Whatever Happened to Green Valley? (1974)

Green Valley was established as a Housing Commission estate in Sydney’s west, becoming home to more than 30,000 people.

But as the community grew, so too did a public image shaped by sensational headlines, stereotypes and harsh media criticism.

Whatever Happened to Green Valley? turns the camera around.

Rather than allowing outsiders to tell their story, Green Valley residents were given Film Australia cameras, lights and microphones and invited to capture their own community - their homes, families and everyday lives, as they experienced them.

The result is a remarkable and deeply authentic portrait of Western Sydney, challenging the stereotypes of the time and asking who gets to tell the story of a community.

At the heart of the film are Green Valley residents Dot Twomey, Ron Whittle, Frank Scambary, Stephen Jurd, Wayne Emerson and Sandra Waterston, who selected the stories, filmed them and helped shape the final edit.

More than a documentary, Whatever Happened to Green Valley? is a fascinating piece of Australian social history — told by the people who lived it.